I think potentially there are some options here. Many games feature an area of effect heal. Not as powerful as a targeted one, but can cover several members at one. However, when I thought about it I wondered how useful it would be in Eve Online.

Firstly apart from bombs and smartbombs there aren't as many AoE weapons in Eve.... yet. Also in a fleet fight, providing the FC and fleet members are doing their job right, they will be focusing fire on a primary. Therefore in the enemy fleet there should only be one target taking damage at any one time. So when you look at it that way, an AoE rep module isn't as useful as you might first think it might be. Some FW scraps in plex can certainly involve damage being spread. In this case it tends to be frigate and destroyer heavy with lots of brawling. An AoE rep will heal your friends... and your foes.

I did caveat the prevalence of AoE damage weapons in Eve with a "yet" in the above. One of the ideas for the Citadel expansion was to have AoE torpedos for starbase defense. The idea behind these sound like they are basically bomb launchers but rather than having a timed explosion set to pop at a certain distance, they'd detonate like a regular torpedo on impact with a locked target. In this case an AoE rep module could be the counter to AoE torpedos coming from citadels if you do not want to spread your fleet out. It might also be useful for the new titan doomsdays which carves through space between two set distances. Of course the usefulness is completely depending on the damage done by this weapon (if it insta-pops every non-capital it hits AoE heals are not really an issue).

Therefore I think in the future AoE rep modules could be a good idea but we need to see how the citadel AoE torpedos and new Titan doomsdays affect combat first.

Sunday, February 28, 2016

Scanning this object reveals a substance that could be used like a neural booster. This complex chemical has some similarities to boosters used to improve capsuleer performance with capacitor manipulation.Given that the substance appears to be of Drifter origin, and exhibits some very unusual properties at the quantum level, using it as a booster should be considered carefully.

There are five varieties giving 8% boosts to Capacitor, Tracking Speed, Armour or Shield Repair Amount and Missile Flight Time that are current on the market. Not a huge boost compared to the 30% bonus of existing Strong Boosters however, these have no side effects.

Friday, February 26, 2016

The main hangar was chaos. Many crews were preparing their ships for launch. Others seemed hesitant probably hoping to ride out the incursion in the outpost. Ragnar strode purposely towards his own ship, the two women following close behind. He saw the others from his crew standing outside the ship near the personnel hatch which was hanging open. They all turned to face him as he approached. It was funny, he thought the next time he had to face them he'd have a dozen angry men and women. All unhappy about the pay for the last trip. Instead he saw twelve faces etched with fear. Falling victim to Sansha's Nation being a more pressing matter than the size of the last pay packet.

"Captain. What we going to do?" Ergrad asked as they neared.

Ergrad was his chief engineer, a fellow Matari and resident miracle worker on the aging Noctis industrial.

"We're making a run for it. Its risky and if anyone wants off the crew that's up to you. However we're going to make for the gate and try and get clear."

"Make a run for it? In THAT?" Linger said pointing her thumb at the ship over her shoulder. Linger was their science officer and worked closely with Ergrad. The Captain believed they worked very closely in fact.

"Its what we've got. You can stay here, the Nation might leave this outpost alone but I think that's unlikely. Making a run for it is our only chance."

"It's not a chance Captain. Its suicide." Ergrad protested. "If we had a frigate or a 'ceptor we might have a chance. A Leopard could make it even. But in that? It turns only slightly faster than a Charon!"

"Normally I'd agree with you but we've got a little bit of help on our side. Oh and if you decide to board you should also know we're about to piss off the Serpentis Syndicate at the same time, so we'll have them on our tail as well."

"You're kidding? The Nation and the Serps? Wait, who's the skirt? Looks like a high-class hooker!" Linger remarked looking around the Captain at Fanason.

"Her? She's a high-class hooker and the reason the Serps will be after us."

Fanason put her hands on her hips and glared at Ragnar.

"Well you are!" he offered in way of apology, shrugging. "Look, that's the situation. Stay here and cross your fingers or risk it on our manually-capsuleer-piloted flying scrapyard. I don't care! I'm leaving." the Captain said turning towards the open hatch.

"Wait? What did you say? Capsuleer piloted? Who's the capsuleer?" Ergrad asked.

"Her." the Captain said pointing at Fanason as he entered the ship.

-o0o-

Ragnar read the message on his datapad as he watched Fanason prep for launch.

Dear Captain.This is an automated message. The scanners on the outpost have detected you have a woman on board. She is Gallente, 5'8", black hair, appears to be 26 years old. She is of interest to the Syndicate. She has either sneaked aboard your ship as a stowaway or negotiated passage by deception. Two squadrons of Serpentis warships will have been put on high alert simply because she is inside your docked ship. If you undock with her on board you will be hunted down and destroyed. An enforcement team will also be tasked with tracking down your immediate family. At this point we do not know if you have a wife and children, siblings or other close family. However if you undock we will find them and they will suffer for your actions.

The sender's address was hidden and there was no way to reply. Ragnar's parents were dead and he had no siblings. They would have no family to go after. Just him and his crew.

"How many did we loose?" he asked.

"Most of them. Only Ergrad and Linger are onboard. Rest are taking their chance on the outpost." Mairanard replied

"Can we do this with just the five of us?" Ragnar asked Fanason.

There was no answer. He looked over and she was at the main console, sat with her hands on the metal casing and her eyes closed. She looked so out of place, still wearing the clothes from last night where he'd met her in the bar. Dressed to seduce. Finally she opened her eyes and pressed the button for the intercom.

"Ergrad. Warp-drive calibration is off point two three negative. Reactor is also suboptimal. Increase temperature 45.7 kelvin and increase polarization by 6.6 hertz."

"Captain?" Ergrad's unsure voice replied.

"Do it." Ragnar commanded.

It was twenty more agonising minutes before they undocked. Ragnar had been telling Ergrad what changes to make and now she was finally happy. The Captain looked at his terminal in disbelief. The power output was higher than he'd ever seen. The engine efficiency was through the roof and his shields were 30% stronger than before. All she did was rest her hands on the hull and she was able to do more than their own AI diagnostics tools. Capsuleers were not natural he concluded.

By the time they undocked the outside of the station was quiet. Everyone had already run. The Noctis slowly aligned to the distant stargate as the Captain's datapad vibrated. Another message.

Dear Captain.It would appear that you have not heeded our last message. Serpentis warships have been dispatched to intercept you. I would advise you redock and throw the trash from your ship. Trust us. Your family will thank you for it.

The ship shuddered as it entered warp. The Captain hoping the incursion will put off any Serpentis fleet. The journey to the stargate took less time than it had done when they had first arrived two weeks ago. The warp drive now operating at peak efficiency. Ragnar heard Mairanard gasp as the warp tunnel collapsed. There in front of them was the huge stargate, buzzing around were several Nation warships. The menacing spikes making them look almost medieval.

"Distance to gate?" the Captain asked.

"5k" Fanason replied.

"Wow!" he exclaimed. Usually they dropped out of warp some 15km from the gate. The navicom unable to safely drop from warp any closer. He knew capsuleers could drop their ships out of warp less than 2000 metres from an active stargate. Fanason was not in a pod though. However she was still able to do better than any normal captain he'd ever heard of. Threat indicators sounded as the Sansha ships locked them up but it was too late. Within seconds they were close enough and the gate activated, opening a tear in space-time. A wormhole that swallowed the Noctis and deposited them in a solar system several light years away.

"Oh shit!" Mairanard exclaimed as the systems reactivated after the jump and the viewscreen revealed the space outside. The incursion was also covering this system and a number of Nation ships laid in wait. "Well, thats us dead!"

"Fanason?" the Captain asked worriedly, agreeing very much with his second-in-commands assessment. Even with Fanason at the helm there was no way they'd escape.

"Cloak will hold for 50 more seconds thats all we need." she replied looking intently at the console.

When jumping through a stargate, the receiving stargate projected a temporary cloaking field on the ship. This allowed for all ship systems to be online after the jump and give the crew a fighting chance if there was trouble waiting for them. The Captain glanced at the timer. 20 seconds. He didn't know what Fanason was planning but they were almost out of time.

Suddenly there were five flashes. Ships dropping out of warp. He looked at the scanner readout. Serpentis! Likely the squad dispatched to intercept them. They were slightly late, obviously not expecting the speed at which they could travel with Fanason at the helm. There was a few seconds pause before all hell broke lose as the Sansha ships engaged the pirates. Space lit up with focused laser fire and missiles.

"Eject a few escape pods!" Fanason ordered as the cloak dropped and she aligned the ship, banking hard.

The Captain didn't question and jettisoned half the pods. With only five crew they didn't need all of them. They slipped into warp as the Sansha ships decimated the larger Serpentis force.

-o0o-

The Captain gazed out of the window. Space appeared tinged with green. They were floating 100km from an asteroid belt. A small structure floated next to them. The bridge was in darkness with the ship running in low-power mode. Even if someone arrived at the asteroid belt, there was a low chance they'd be spotted unless they were a capsuleer or running active scans. In a system under incursion it was highly unlikely.

"So that thing out there is blocking scans?" Mairanard asked as she looked out along side the Captain.

"Yes." Fanason replied. "Its a capsuleer mobile scan disruptor. There was probably also a mobile warp disruptor structure here as well when the trap was manned. They would sit in here hidden from scanners. Miners would scan the system, assume space was empty and warp to the asteroid field. Only they'd get caught in a warp disruption bubble and land here into an ambush. I noticed the Serpentis were enroute and also there was this 'hole' in the scan when we jumped in. Its the best location to hide out for now. We got lucky last time, I don't think we'll have a Serpentis gang to distract the Sansha and rescue us next time".

"So we just wait?"

"Captain. Even if we escape the Serpentis will try to hunt us down. Our best bet is to hide away until the Sisters arrive and pronounce us dead."

"What?" Mairanard asked in shock. The Captain laughed.

"That's why you told me to eject the pods. After the incursion finishes the Sisters of Eve will arrive to provide humanitarian aid. The gates will be full of the remnants of ships. The Sisters will find our pods, assume we are one of the remnants of the wrecks and log us as lost. The Serpentis will see this, check the logs and find no one was recovered and assume we died when the ship was lost or were taken by the Sansha. Brilliant!"

They opened some bottles of beer and sat on the floor in the middle of the bridge. Mairanard asked how Fanason had gotten here. She recounted the story she had told the Captain the night before.

"Wow. What a bitch!" Mairanard muttered after she'd finished.

"I was sleeping with her man. I suppose it was an over-reaction, but she cannot be blamed for all of it."

"So who were your worst clients?" Mairanard asked drawing a moan from the Captain. Fanason laughed.

"Its OK Captain, I don't mind talking about it. Veldspar miners were the worst. Usually they couldn't afford me but once in awhile they'd strike a rich roid and come up to the Bumped Titan with a fistful of credits. I'd double my fee and even then, urrrghhhh!"

The Captain and Mairanard laughed.

"Best Clients?"

"Caldari businessmen. Not only do they have the cash to splash, they also feel they have something to prove. The old Caldari-Gallente animosity means they want this Gallente woman to know they make better lovers. Therefore they really work for it. I rarely get off when working, but these guys are more interested in my 'O' than theirs most the time."

"Most surprising Client?"

"The station owner's daughter."

"WHAT?" Mairanard said spitting drink.

"Don't look at me like that!" Fanason laughed "She was a grown woman in her 20's!"

"How did that happen?" Mairanard asked interested.

"Well I was at the Bumped Titan and about to call it a night when I saw her enter. She was dressed up so I thought she was meeting a guy. She came to the bar, had one drink, paid and went to leave. As she walked past she slipped me a bit of paper. It had a room number on it. I'd never spoken to her even though I knew who she was. I thought she might have overheard something and wanted to tip me off. You know, the Serps were bored keeping tabs on me and had decided they wanted me killed in an accident or something. Anyway I get to the room and she's there. She gives me a wad of money and says she was back on mid-term break. The weekend before there'd been a party near the university she goes to. A group of drunk college dudes had dared her and her friend to kiss. They were drunk so did it. She enjoyed it a bit too much and was worried. Confused even. So she wanted to know."

"Wow!" Mairanard remarked. "So you're bisexual?"

"No. I'm buy-sexual. If you are paying for my time then I'll be whatever you want me to be! I prefer men, but woman are welcome."

Mairanard laughed again. "So did you confirm anything for her?"

"Next morning she thanked me for a good time and that she really enjoyed herself, but it was definatly men she liked and left. I always smile when I hear Hronn in the Bumped Titan talking about his little princess away at university. If only he knew she'd spent most the night with her head between my thighs comparing sex with me to college-jock-cock!"

"Enough!" said the Captain "I'm going to have enough trouble sleeping tonight as it is!"

The two girls fell about laughing as he stood up, trying not to show how the stories had been affecting him.

"Ergrad. What's the situation back there?" Ragnar asked into the the comms unit. There was a few seconds of silence.

"All good Capt. Reactor is sleeping soundly but I can have it to 75% power in twenty seconds. 90 within a minute. With such a low output we shouldn't be seen unless someone nearly bumps into us."

"Good. Just make sure you are ready if the time comes. I'm on first watch up here, one of you get some sleep."

The Captain turned back to Mairanard and Fanason and suggested that they grab some mattresses and blankets from the quarters. With such a limited crew they would need to sleep on the bridge. Mairanard also said she'd bring up some food from the galley. In about half an hour they had a small camp site set up in the corner of the bridge.

"I'll take first watch. Then Mairanard then you Fanason. Four hours each. We'll then look at making a run for it. OK?"

"You OK for first watch Captain? The effects of story-time mean you are still alert?" Mairanard giggled making Fanason laugh. The Captain just glared at her through half opened eyes.

"Get some sleep! I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be fun!" the Captain sighed returning to the console.

-o0o-

"What is it?" the Captain asked.

"Its a capsuleer fleet I think. Probably here for the incursion." Fanson replied looking at the scanner. She had moved the ship just outside the mobile scan inhibitors range and was scanning towards the stargate.

"What's the plan?" Mairanard asked.

"Its safe to assume if there were any Sansha warships either side of the gate the eggers have destroyed them. Look, they are warping away. I'll plot a course for the gate." Fanson replied.

"No!" said the Captain "Plot a course for that!" He pointed at the screen.

"You cannot be serious?" Fanason sighed.

"Can you tell me 100% the Serpentis are going to fall for the escape pod trick?"

Fanason shook her head.

"So we go there and get what we need. Remember its not just the Sansha we are running from!"

Fanason shrugged her shoulders and adjusted the course. The ship shuddered as it entered warp.

"You know if Sansha reinforcements or more capsuleers show up we'll likely die in a fire."

The Captain nodded as the warp tunnel on the main viewer collapsed and the stargate loomed in the distance.

I'd like CCP to still be aiming for it. OK it's been a bumpy ride and so far the only success story from the three elements is the flying in space bit.

Flying in Space

Should remain top priority and to be fair CCP Seagull's roadmap probably doesn't need many tweaks. Ship balancing and module tiericide should be an ongoing process. Milestones should be included on any five year road map but it should be like painting any steel bridge. Once you've reached the end and completed it, it's time to restart again.

Our new Space Houses are going to probably be a main feature for the first two years of any 2016 roadmap. Remember the launch of the Citadel expansion in May time (I'm guessing) will only introduce the first of seven types of "Space House". Drilling Platforms, Observation Arrays, Laboratories and more are yet to come. These will trickle out over the next year to 18 months at a guess.

Then at the same time we have the capital rebalance. Carriers sending fighters 100's of kilometres to engage. Dreadnoughts using grapples and high-angle guns to murder battleships. Titans carving sub-cap fleets in half with their slicing doomsday.

New space has been talked about for ages and I think this will be Jove Space. New space, new rules. I had been worried about this new space simply becoming Goon HQ however with themittani.com now a commertial enterprise I think we'll see Goons-Lite. They are already emerging. We Don't Want to Ruin THE Game - We Want to... Be Your Friend and Sell You Stuff.

Walking in StationsI've said this many times. We wanted WiS. We were excited for it. The CCP dropped the ball. Well, that's a bit of an understatement. The aftermath, the newsletter, the email. It tainted WiS. However I do believe that to be a truly immersive sci-fi simulator we do need more WiS. You know what my sell it to the masses? Well, I don't know if you know but VR is a big deal right now. CCP have had huge investment in its VR labs. What if WiS went VR? Corporation and Alliance offices? The actual NEX store where you can walk around and see the goods? The bars where you can buy boosters (after they have been taken off the market) and gamble. Now that would be immersive!

Boots on the GroundI like FPS games. Call of Duty, Titanfall. I bought a PS3 for Dust in Beta. Hated it. Every few months after a major patch I'd update it and try it again. I wanted to like it. I'm a Eve fan-boi! I should like it. No, I didn't and couldn't as much as I tried. CCP need to learn lessons from DUST514 and also from those that have been highly successful. The aforementioned CoD, Titanfall and other spunkgargleweewee games as Yahtzee calls them. Take their best bits! Remember copying from one is plagiarism, copying from many is research.

Expanding into the UnknownThis is likely to be the topic for Blog Banter 73. What other genres could CCP move into. I have one I'd love to see... but lets save that for next month!

Sunday, February 21, 2016

A fellow Eve player has got me into doing a bit of mixing. Over the weekend I was writing a blog post whilst listening to the mix I had done the night before. Excellent tunes, however my mixing of them is the musical equivalent of B-R. Anyway I'm on SiSi needing some screenshots in the CQ and the mixing is particularly terrible at this point. Hang on.... someone is talking about the Endurance ice mining frigate? Does superstar DJ Paul Oakenfold play Eve? What the....?

It was then I realised not only does Eve have sound... the TV in your CQ has sound and was playing a Scope news broadcast!

Friday, February 19, 2016

Ragnar pulled back on the throttle and the aging Noctis industrial vibrated as it slowed. The inertial dampeners were failing. Another expense he didn't need. He sent the docking request to the station and left the ship on autopilot. He looked over his spreadsheet and double checked the numbers. Two weeks out and a share for this run was worth just under a thousand credits. He'd lose crew here he knew it. He would need to hold off transferring the wages until the salvage had been offloaded. Once they knew they were only getting a grand for two weeks in deep space many would just walk away. The salvage had been poor quality. He needed to find a wreck of a capsuleer strategic cruiser or even a black-ops. He'd moved to this area as there had been a capsuleer war raging. However neither side had been willing to risk any expensive ships.

The docking request was accepted and Ragnar took control of the ship. May be if he gave the crew a couple of days shore leave it might help. He looked up the station services. A standard Matari deep-space outpost. If you had ore to process this was your place. If you were looking for fun, not so much. There were a number of bars and clubs listed, a hotel and a zero-G sports arena. Yes, he was going to lose crew on this dock. However on the bright side it would probably be a good place to find replacements. People desperate to get off this outpost in the arse-end of nowhere. The ship shook again as the outpost's tractor beams locked onto the ship and pulled it through the atmosphere shield. Within a few minutes the ship was secured.

At the dock he could see three MTACs waiting to offload the cargo. The docking process was finalised and the cargo bay doors opened. 5 minutes later he saw a notification that the buyer had transferred the funds. He hit the button to release the crew wages before heading to the captain's exit that led direct to the station quarters each captain was granted on docking. He didn't want to be around when the crew came complaining about the meager wages from this run.

-o0o-

The Rust Rinse was cold and refreshing. Probably the only saving grace of this outpost was that it served good Matari ale. Ragnar was sat in the "Bumped Titan", a bar in the executive hotel on the station. On a Gallente station it wouldn't even be rated as a three-star. However by Matari standards it was expensive. He could have gone to one of the cheaper bars but no doubt he'd run into some of his crew. Explaining it wasn't his fault that they hadn't got any quality salvage this run would have been a futile task. He was the captain and it would be seen as his fault. Fights would start and he'd need to make an example. Not tonight. He needed a drink.

"Anyone sitting here?" the voice spoke in Matari but Ragnar knew it was a Gallente voice. He turned to find a woman stood there smiling.

"Nope." he said cautiously.

The woman smiled and sat on the bar stool, turning slightly away from Ragnar as she tried to attract the barmans attention. Ragnar glanced around the room. There were several places she could have sat but she chose the seat next to him. He appraised her discreetly as she continued to look down the bar in the opposite direction. She was a classic True-Gallente beauty. He'd have guessed mid-twenties. Her hair was the shade of a blackhole and shone in the bars harsh light. She wore a black jacket with a sheer black skin-tight top below it. The deep V of the jacket revealed the edges of her lace bra and a hint of cleavage. The skirt was short but tasteful. The heels were bright red with a stiletto. High and deadly. Why would an attractive woman, dressed to kill, come to sit next to him? He could guess. In fact the way he felt right now, some company, even the type you pay for by the hour, would be a welcome distraction.

"So, are you a Captain?" she asked after she received her drink.

"What makes you say that." he replied.

"You don't look like like the usual business man who stays at this hotel. I've never seen you on the outpost before and it's a small outpost. If you were crew you'd be drinking on one of the lower decks where the booze is cheaper. Therefore probably Captain or high-level ships officer with the creds to spend looking for what pretends to be a classier establishment in this middle-of-nowhere dump of an outpost. I doubt you're an officer though. I've seen there are a couple of Ventures docked along with a Badger and a Noctis. None of those ships usually have a command crew, just a captain. Therefore you are likely to be the Captain of one of those ships."

"Well done. The Noctis. She's mine." he said with a smile. "Bit of a rust-bucket but she does alright by me."

"So, you looking for some R&R tonight?" she said turning slightly to face him. He glanced down as she uncrossed and recrossed her legs.

"I could be." Ragnar replied guardedly unsure if she was meaning what he thought she was meaning. The flash of lace stocking tops as she purposely crossed her legs almost confirmed it.

"I'm Fanason," she said extending a hand "and its 600 chips."

Ragnar laughed shaking her hand. "You don't waste much time do you?"

"What's the point? We could waste an hour making small talk. With your reaction I can tell you are not surprised what I am. However you might have been, and we'd have both wasted our time when it came to the real business."

"No, I'm not surprised. However I am drinking in this bar mainly to avoid my crew who are probably more than a little upset that the share for the last run was so bad. Hence, whilst I am sure you're worth every cred, 600 is out of my league."

"OK what you got?"

"200"

"No you don't." she said smiling "400."

"250"

"300"

"OK, Lets go!" Fanason said sliding off the stool.

-o0o-

Ragnar pressed his his thumb onto her datapad which beeped signaling that the transfer of funds was authorised. Fanason smiled at him, placed the datapad back in her bag and walked to a counter and placed her bag down. She turned around to face him and unfastened the buttons on her jacket letting it fall open slightly.

"Well Captain. I'm all yours" she purred.

He move quickly, covering the distance between them in seconds, pushing her against the bulkhead. His hungry lips finding hers. She returned the kiss with passion sliding a hot, wet tongue into his mouth. Ragnar's hand dropped down pulling her leg up and over his hip. She wrapped it around him, pulling him into her as his hand slid up her silk clad legs, over the lace tops and to the hot flesh above. His hand moved higher, pushing the unbuttoned jacket off her shoulders whilst he kissed and nibbled on her neck. She gasped in pleasure as he playfully nipped her.

He pulled the see-through top over her head, breaking the kiss momentarily before pushing her bra up over her breasts and dipping his mouth to them. His hands snaked around her back to pull her in close as he took a rock-hard nipple into his mouth eliciting a gasp from his lover. He felt something with his fingers as they traced up her spine. Something metal. "No" he thought "It cannot be." As his mouth worked on her breasts he moved his hands higher up her back. There was another and another, metal disks with holes set into her spine. The realisation hit him. He suddenly pulled back in fear. She gave him a weak smile.

"Look...." she started.

"You're a capsuleer." he said pointing at her with a shaking finger. "You're an egger. An immortal." Real fear etched on his face.

She shook her head slowly. "Not any more." she said sadly pulling her bra back down to cover herself.

The fear in Ragnar's eyes subsided slightly but he kept his distance.

"I'm sorry." he said. "I don't understand. You have the implants, the sockets!"

"Let me explain." she said sitting on the small bed and patting it to indicate he should sit next to her.

-o0o-

"I always wanted to fly, so I joined the Navy after college. During the initial testing it was found I was capsule-compatible. The minimum term is a lot longer if they put you through capsuleer training but what's 10 more years if it'll make you immortal. Things were good for a few years. Then it all fell apart. It was the outbreak of hostilities at the start of the Empyrean war. That bastard Heth had launched against Caldari Prime in Luminaire. I was part of the defense fleet trying to stop the invasion. It was total confusion. Caldari dropships trying to get to the planet mixed with all the civilian traffic. Command lost it and our squadron was ordered to fire on anything trying to reach the planet. I never signed up to blast Gallente families out of the sky. So I disobeyed a direct order and was ordered to return to the carrier. I knew what would happen if I complied and I was having none of it. I headed straight for low-sec. The bastards even sent a couple of 'ceptors after me. One of the planets in our home system was being invaded and they were bothered about me skipping? Anyway I got to Old Man Star and then deeper into low-sec. I was low on ammo when I came across a Serpentis outpost. I was out of options. I contacted them and spoke to their commander. From then on I was no longer a Lieutenant in the Federal Navy. I was a smuggler. The Serpentis were happy. An 'Egger' running their product. It was all going well. Not the career I'd chosen and not one I was happy with. However running product for the Serpentis was better in my opinion than firing antimatter charges at civilians, the same civilians that I had sworn an oath to protect. The Feds had put a bounty on my head but the Serps provided protection for me. I wouldn't say it was going well at that time, but it was better than the alternative.

Then I fracked up, I fracked up massively. I got involved with someone I shouldn't have. Anyway his girlfriend was a local Serpentis commander. When she found out she went nuts. He was flushed out of an airlock. However she didn't want that fate for me. They used a stun baton to fry my implants. I have never felt so much pain. Two of her enforcers held me whilst a third one fried each in turn as she stared into my face smiling. Those sockets on my back are useless. I cannot jack into a capsule anymore. Fried beyond use. They then flew me out here to the arse-end of space and dumped me on this station. She knew exactly what she was doing. There are no real jobs here, it's a poor station. Only way to survive is to sell the only thing I have. This is my punishment, selling myself to salvagers and miners deep in null-sec."

Ragnar looked shell-shocked.

"Surely a captain would give you a ride back to low-sec for.... you know."

She laughed.

"Yes I'm sure they would. Unfortunately they thought of that. Before I was dumped here they implanted a small tracking device within whats left of my implants. If I step on any ship in the dock the Captain of that ship gets an automated message saying if he undocks with me still onboard they intercept him and destroy his ship. I could easily bater passage back to civilisation, but no Captain is going to risk going to war with the Serpentis over a good lay. The medical facilities here are laughable. No way of getting the tracker out of my back either without risking paralysis. My only chance is to save up, buy an old frigate and make a run for it myself. However, that bitch knew what she was doing when she left me here. With business as it is here I'll never save enough.

"But surely you could get one of the top jobs on the outpost here. The owners would kill to have an ex-capsuleer heading up their C&C surely? Must be better than..." Ragnar's voice trailed away.

"She thought of that too. The owners have been warned if they give me a proper job they'll get a visit from one of their enforcement teams. Not just them, their family too. Best job I can get on the outpost is a cleaner with one of the contractors which will just about cover rent and food in return for scrubbing toilets. Yeah, she won."

Ragnar shook his head.

"That's just...evil." he said pausing to find the right word.

"It is what it is. Now, if you're finished with my full background, I have to work for that frigate!"

She pushed him backwards and he fell onto the bed. Climbing on top of him she removed her bra and leaned forward, hovering her breasts just over his lips.

"So, where were we?" she said with a smile.

-o0o-

The buzzer woke Ragnar with a start. Someone was furiously hammering on the door too. He glanced over and Fanason was still asleep. He slipped from the bed and groggily made his way over. He looked at the viewscreen set into the door controls. Mairanard was there. She was sort of his second in command on the Noctis. The ship didn't really need an XO but she was the closest he had. He opened the door.

"About fracking time!" she growled storming inside.

"Come on in!" he muttered sarcastically.

"Ah I see by your company not everyone was so poorly paid yesterday." Mairanard sneered looking at Fanason who had been woken by the commotion and was sat up holding the sheet to cover her naked body.

"Cut the shit Mairanard I'm not in the mood. You know the rules, the Captain should get two shares, you get one and a half, everyone else one. I took less than one in the end so you got more than me. I cannot believe you're storming in here at this hour to bitch about pay when you of all the crew should know how shit the last run was."

Mairanard turned to face him with her hands on her hips.

"I'm not here to bitch about pay. I'm here because you're not answering your god-damn datapad!"

"Its on silent. I had, have, company! What's the fracking crisis? The bar run out of rum?"

"CRISIS?" Mairanard screamed! "You have no fracking idea!"

She stomped over to the desk and hit the control for the vid-screens. The room was bathed in red light almost instantly as the holographic screens appeared.

"Oh shit!" Ragnar exclaimed as he read the headlines. The word everyone feared in this day and age was plastered across the top of the main screen. 'Incursion'.

"Whilst you're doing your bit for Matari/Gallente relations, the fracking Nation have dropped in and are currently destroying anything in space as they systematically raid the planets! Has the blood transferred from your little head to the big one in sufficient volume that you can come up with some sort of plan to prevent us from all being turned into fracking space-zombies?"

Ragnar paused.

"We fly out of here!"

"Oh fracking great! Yeah, fly out of here in that slow-ass Noctis. The Sansha will have a field day on us! No way we can outfly them! A Reverent could catch us in that thing!"

"No, we can't outfly them. But a Capsuleer piloting at the helm might be able to!"

"Shit! You really do need a blood shunt between your heads! It's not even a capsuleer capable outpost. So where the frack are we going to find a capsuleer out here that wants to manually pilot our rust bucket?"

Ragnar turned and looked to Fanason. Mairanard turned too, wondering what he was looking out. She looked at the darked-haired Gallente woman in her Captain's bed.

Monday, February 15, 2016

Secondly, I'm really not feeling the CSM elections this year. Not in the slightest. I don't know what it is. The last few CSM's have had their share of controversy. Whatever the reason I'm really meh about the whole thing. Lets have a look on the CSM Campaign Page.

Who?
Who?
Xenuria. Oh that guy who was asking the questions at fanfest. Next!
Who?
Bobmon of Eve News 24.
No idea.
No idea.
Who?
Who?
Who?
Blah, blah, blah.
VOTE JOFFY!
Who?
Who?
This one is so unknown they didn't even add their name to the thread title!
Rest of page 1 I have no idea and no inclination to read them.

Page 2 highlights I spot are Nashh Kadavr, Chiimera and Gorski Carr. Page 3 yields Steve Ronuken (ZOMG a CSM X going for re-election) and Gevlon Goblin before we reach the locked threads from October. I know these names from the community and/or sharing a pint in Heathrow Airport and/or trying the Morpheus headset group at Fanfest 2014.

2016 has been a crap start to the year for me. I've not been following the CSM lobbying very closely. However, where is Sugar Kyle? I think Mike Azariah said X would be his last which is a shame.

The candidacy period closes today with voting in ten days time. Voting for who? Apart from Joffy (VOTE JOFFY) I have no idea. Am I missing something? Where are the rest of CSM X?

I got to this point and really don't know what to say (other than vote Joffy). I know I've been out of it for last couple of months but seriously. What's going on here?

I'll keep this short and hope someone can fill me in on the comments! Anyone like to offer an explanation to what's going on?

Sunday, February 14, 2016

Needed a screenshot on SiSi so logged on and was wondering what the hell was going on here! Planets aren't usually egg-shaped right?

It would appear the Tactical Camera can cause some interesting views! Don't know if its only with ultra-wide monitors or all screens make it look things at the edge are getting sucked into a black hole!

Friday, February 12, 2016

Ahka looked above the dance floor focusing on a pulsing red light. Suddenly he was no longer in a bar on the Gallente battleship that rescued him. He was back in that escape pod, freezing and waiting for death whilst staring at that warning indicator.

"There you go!"

Her voice broke Ahka out of his waking dream. A strange green cocktail was sat in front of him. He eyed it suspiciously.

"It's a Jovial Jovian.. Its nice! Try it." she smile.

Ahka picked up the drink and sipped it. His focus now back on the two Matari on the dance floor. Matari without glave collars or a Vitoc addiction. Free Matai. Dangerous Matari.

"Look, we might not approve of your culture's treatment of Matari but you don't have to worry about them."

He wasn't sure. Slaves were a part of life in the Amarrian Empire. His household had them, the ship he served on had them. Whilst he had not met his future wife, he knew she was the daughter of a farming family and had tens of thousands of slaves. However if he ever saw one of those slaves without their collar or the look of Vitoc addiction he would run. He'd heard too many stories about what had happened when his kind had got careless with slaves. No, he just needed to avoid them tonight. Tomorrow they were to dock in a station where he could get an InterBus shuttle back to the Empire. He'd been able to contact his family already. They would have a ship waiting for him. His funeral service had been cancelled and the wedding was back on. It was a time for celebration back home.

"Want to dance?"

Ahka at her looked in shock.

"I said want to dance not be flushed out of the airlock!"

He shook his head!

"I know you've never been kissed. Don't tell me you've never danced!"

"Not... not like this!" he protested gesturing to the dance floor where the crew writhed and grinded into each other. "And not with a... a... a..."

"With a what?" she smiled at his discomfort.

Ahka searched for the right word.

"Dances in my world are more formal." he said trying to explain. "The lightest of touch of hands and there must be a minimum of 30cm separation."

"We're not in the Empire now Amarrian!" she laughed jumping to her feet and dragging him up.

Ahka was sweating. All around him couples danced this strange Gallente way. No separation. No holding of hands. It was clearly sexual. However he wasn't horrified by what he saw, or what he was starting to do. May be it was the drink. May be it was the music. Ahka started to move. His companion smiled. She twisted and backed into him. Her hands moved behind and grabbed his wrists forcing his hands onto her hips. She pushed against him. In his 22 years Ahka had never been this close to a woman who wasn't a relative. He felt his body betraying him. She turned her head, he expected her to have a disapproving look. She didn't. She smiled and grinded harder into him keeping his hands pinned to her hips.

They danced like this for several songs before his partner indicated she wanted a drink. They weaved their way through the dancefloor back to the bar.

"You dance well to say you've never danced before." she smiled.

"I have danced before!" he protested. "Just not like that. On my planet that would get you arrested!" he said with a laugh.

The barman came over and she leaned over to speak to him over the noise of the thumping music. He heard only a couple of words. "Booth" and "bottle". The man nodded and walked away. A few seconds later a woman appeared with a silver bucket with a bottle in it and gestured them to follow her.

Ahka looked at his companion quizzically. She was busy tapping something out on her datapad as they walked. She looked up and saw him.

"Time for some chillout!" she responded.

He nodded but felt slightly disappointed. He'd been enjoying the Gallente dancing.

The woman with the bucket led them to a row of booths. There were no chairs, just thick rugs and cushions on the floor. He sat down and the woman placed the bucket on the floor along with a tray of glasses.. As she left she unhooked a chiffon curtain that fell across the front of the booth. His companion poured two glasses and passed one to him.

"To your last night on a Gallente ship!" she toasted.

He clinked his glass against hers.

"Its been an education." he smiled.

"Its not over yet!" she said returning the smile.

Ahka saw two figures approaching. Through the fine material he couldn't make out who they were. A hand appeared in the gap in the curtain and pulled it to one side. It was the two Matari women. He quickly scampered back away from the opening in fear. The three women started to laugh.

"Calm down Amarrian! They are here for a drink! Stop being so... well.... Amarrian!"

He slowly returned to the centre as the two Minmatar woman sat and grabbed a glass filling it with the clear spirit. One of the said something he didn't understand.

"What did she say?" he asked nervously.

"She said your fairly cute for an Amarrian." his companion replied before saying something back to the Matari woman. Whatever it was made the woman put on a comedy pout.

"What did you say to her!" Ahka said wanting to know why the Matari woman put the pout on.

"I said she was out of luck. You were promised in marriage to another woman and that she'd be disappointed anyway as you've not even kissed before."

Ahka looked horrified. The three women burst out laughing.

"Don't get upset Amarrian!" his companion said picking up the bottle and refilling his glass. We're only having fun with you."

Ahka nodded and drank. He couldn't wait until tomorrow.

-o0o-

The next two hours flew by. It was difficult with his companion having to translate everything but he had to admit he was enjoying himself. The two Matari women really did not bear him any ill-will and seemed generally interested in him.

They were onto their second bottle and were having a good time when one of the Matari women asked something and his companion shook her head dismissively.

"What did she say?" he asked.

"It doesn't matter." she said dismissively.

"No. Want to know. Really. I won't be angry!" he said his curiosity getting the better of him.

"If you really want to know she was asking if I had been telling the truth about the kissing thing."

Ahka blushed.

"I told her to leave it alone. She said it was a great loss for women."

Ahka blushed even more.

"Tell her thank you. However its the custom on my planet and I don't make the rules." he said with a smile.

She translated and the Matari woman nodded. Leaning forward she went onto her hands and knees facing him. Ahka gulped. Her ass was in the air, the tight black leather pants were skin tight. She slowly started to crawl towards him. The other two women smiled and watched. Ahka froze as she approached with an agonising slowness. The look on her face was pure lust. He was sure the slow predatory approach was leaving him the opportunity to back off or move away. He knew he should but he couldn't. He gazed at her lips, full and red as she neared. Sweat appeared on his brow. His hands gripped his legs to hide the shaking. Closer she neared, he could see down her top. Her full breasts were pale. She first placed her left hand outside his right knee. Then her right hand the other side. He could smell her perfume. She looked up at him and licked her lips as she started to rise. A voice inside Ahka's head screamed at him to back off. To move away. He couldn't. She was face to face with him now. He was breathing heavily. Fear, expectation, lust. He couldn't tell which emotion was the strongest. He closed his eyes as he felt her hand caress his cheek. He felt her breath on his lips. Still he didn't move. Then he felt her her lips gently touch his. The briefest of touches. A second later he felt the contact again. Longer this time. He responded back. He felt her hot wet tongue dip into his mouth. He could taste the vodka. She pulled back and he opened his eyes. She was there smiling. The other two girls had moved in close. The one that had just kissed him, his first real kiss, spoke again. He wished he'd learnt some Gallente in school.

"What did she say?" he asked, croaking the words out.

"She said it's a travesty that such a good kisser should be exclusively for only one woman ever."

Ahka smiled at that. A second later the other Matari woman placed her hand on his cheek and turned his head to face her. She moved in quick before he could react. This kiss was different. More forceful, more passionate. When she broke away he turned to his Gallente guide to ask her to translate something for him. Before he could speak she too was kissing him. As she did he felt lips on his neck. The four melted down into the cushions. He felt someone grab his wrist, pushing his hand under clothing. His hand felt warm flesh. Something soft. Hands were all over him, clothing being loosened. Sin.

-o0o-

Captain Setiges stood at the observation window at the front of the huge battleship. She watched the small yellow InterBus shuttle undock from the large Gallente station. Footsteps behind signalled someone was approaching.

"We've been flying in circles for a week. Some 100mm ISK down. I hope it was worth it Captain."

Nimestre was her Executive Officer and was never scared of speaking his mind. She always like that in her officers. 'Yes' men and women had no place on her crew.

"So do I. However look at the big picture here. Initially we find a nobody Amarrian almost dead in an escape pod. However a bit of digging reveals he is to marry into the Sirin family. On their planet, one of the biggest slavers there is. The Sirin family has no sons and he is marrying the eldest daughter. When his father-in-law-to-be dies, he'll be head of the house. Think about it Nim. Think what we have done here. Will Ahka view the Matari in the same light again? When he owns 50 thousand Matari slaves how will he feel? If he does the right thing will it set an example to others? What if his experiences here have changed him. What if we showed him his dogma is wrong. He broke so many rules last night and still enjoyed himself. What if that sets in motion what we hope it will?"

The XO stayed quiet. Mulling it over.

"And all it took was our ship to do nothing for a week, you pretending to be a nurse and, well, the sacrifice Hrast and Vunstede had to make last night! I hope its worth it."

"Hrast and Vunstede have been very well compensated for their sacrifice. I clearly told them the plan and what they would have to do. They might rightfully hate Amarrians, but double-teaming one for a single night that could lead to vastly improving the lives of fifty thousand of their brothers and sisters? I told them if they said no it would in no way reflect on them. They both agreed without hesitation after I explained what might happen. Plus I think they got an extra kick out of corrupting one of the pious Amarrian assholes! Yeah they went back to his quarters and screwed him senseless, but what they may have achieved cannot be measured."

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

A comment was made on Monday's post about the heavy grapple. Could the principals of high-strength/short range eWar with falloff be rolled out further to other types?

WARNING - This is a "brainstorming" post. I'm thinking and typing. Plus I have only a short break after a full days work before I have a full night's work. Beware of my rambling....

Disruptors?Yes I think this could be a good one to do. A disruptor with a 5km range and a 25km falloff. At 5km it has one point of warp disruption strength. This then drops away to 0.1 at 40km. Obviously on a normal ship once it drops to 0.99999 the ship could warp away (6km), but what if you have two people pointing it? Or three? At 40km providing you have several people pointing the ship it might stack up to being enough to hold someone down.

Scrams?This would be a good one for the potential ideas surrounding cap rebalance. A scram with a 1km range but +6 warp scram. This drops off the further you get away. With the idea that supers in the future can be pointed providing you have enough points this could mean its a handy BS module for holding down the big boys! Also gets BS into close combat with supers and their new high-angle anti-BS weapons.

Sensor Damps?Same as the Grappler really. At 10km they have a huge effect. As you make range they still can damp you but the amount they damp you is reduced the further you are away. For targeting range this isn't much use, but for sensor strength it could make a huge difference. Get those logi jammed and having to retarget with a 90% reduction to scan resolution? Nah, don't think these would work in this style!

Tracking Disruptors?Not sure about these either. They already have a falloff and if you are close enough to a BS for these to hit you at their potential high strength it won't matter as you are so close. If you are sniping then a standard tracking disruptor is designed for long range. Not sure these would work in the same way as the heavy stasis grapple.

ECM?ECM already has a falloff and whilst the strength doesn't drop it has a similar effect. The further out you are beyond optimal, the less chance of jamming your target. May be they could be like the Navy Griffin. Higher strength than the standard ECM module but a much shorter optimal. Then again that might make point-blank brawling problematic if everyone has an ECM module with high strength. Nope! Leave ECM out of this!

Target Painting?Another that already has optimal and falloff. May be some benefit to a BS version that has a much shorter optimal and fall off (30+60km for a T2 painter so a max of 90km) but much higher power. 60% signature bloom but 2-3km optimal and a 10km fall off?

When I started this post I thought the idea behind the heavy stasis grapple could be repeated with all eWar. That's clearly not the case. Some will work well, some you may ask what's the point, others would be bad for the game.

Monday, February 8, 2016

Fozzie has announced the plans for a new battleship/capital only mid-slot module. The Heavy Stasis Grapple. Continuing the previous theme of eWar with higher strength than seen before but with poor range (like the Navy Griffin), these webs have an optimal of only 1km (3km when overheated) but have up to 87.5% speed reduction (for the officer versions). They also have falloff. So you can web out to around 23km but the power drops off as your target makes range (less than 10% web effect at 19km). Note that overheating does not affect total falloff, only optimal. It also doesn't get affected by links or hull bonus (your Vindicator will not turn this into a medusa module!).

I guess the idea of these modules are to tie-down the smaller ships, especially things like the Svipul. Get under the battleships guns and you find yourself in the grasp of pretty much Vindicator strength webs!

My guess is these will be popular on rapid heavy missile fits with missile computers. Lure the tackle in, spank it. However what about that range? Probably too low? With a Navy web having a 14km optimal and a 60% slowing effect, why drop 93% range for that extra 25% speed reduction? Well looks to be the fall off and the ability to overheat.

At 14km the heavy grapple will be about only about 28% speed reduction effect. It jumps to over 45% if overheated.

The other issue is none missile boats. Hitting something like a destroyer at 1km away even with a strong web? I'm not sure it'll work as well. Tracking computers might help but I think heavy missiles will be the way to go.

My first reaction was they needed a range buff. Now I think its clever thinking on CCP's part. These are not just simple on or off modules. These need careful use and managing. Heating will probably be absolutely critical to using them effectively. You can see more details on Fozzie's forum post linked at the start.

Friday, February 5, 2016

Just when I thought things were settling it all starts going Pete Tong again. I knew 2016 was going to be a bad year. Just a short follow up today. Will finish this story next week I promise! Part 1 is here.

The Red Light - Part 2

Ahka paced nervously around his quarters. He was uncomfortable. A week ago he was onboard an Amarrian ship. A good ship. A ship of the faithful. Since then they'd been attacked and he'd spent nearly 24 hours drifting in an escape pod before being rescued by the crew of this Gallente vessel. He was being tested he was sure. She was coming to collect him in a few minutes. The nurse who had saved him. The Gallente woman, the only person on the ship who could speak Amarrian. She was a test too he was sure. He'd have been happy spending the entire week until they docked at a station in his quarters. However she insisted he had to come out and see the ship. Meet new people. See more. He'd resisted for five days. However he was informed that tonight he had no choice. She was taking him out for some fun. The buzzer on his door sounded. He stopped and looked. She was here. The test had begun. The door open and she strolled in.

Ahka swallowed. It was a test indeed. No good Amarrian woman would dress like that!

"Ready for the tour?" she asked cheerfully.

"I'm not feeling well." he lied.

"Oh come on Amarr! Live a little. I promise we won't corrupt you!" she laughed taking him by the arm and leading him to the door.

"Have you ever been in anything that wasn't Amarrian?" she asked as they strolled down the corridor.

"No." he replied curtly.

The ship was certainly a lot different to the ones he was used too. The structure was curved. Almost organic. The normal golds were replaced with hues of light green. It was also quiet. Amarrian ships had less automation and therefore bigger crews. There was also another difference. No slaves. On Amarrian ships there were usually a few slaves at least. Matari wearing glave collars shuffling around doing the menial tasks aboard the ship. Ahka looked around in wonderment.

"How do you keep everything so tidy without...." he stuttered remembering that the Gallente were strictly opposed to slavery "...a large crew?" he finally finished.

"Automation. We use a variety or small drones and robots to do most of the work on our ships."

Ahka nodded. He'd heard the Gallente used drones much more than they did for everything from working the fields to fighting their battles.

They continued down to a bank of lifts, passing a few crew both on and off duty as they walked.

"Where are we going?" Ahka asked nervously as the lift accelerated.

"For a drink. You drink don't you Amarrian." she chuckled.

"Despite what you have heard about us from your propaganda, yes we Amarrians know how to have a good time." he replied dryly.

The lift slowed and the doors opened. Ahka froze. Why was he being tested like this?

The scene before him was like no other he'd ever seen. It was a huge bar complete with busy dance floor. All around people were drinking and dancing. He slowly walked out of the lift led by his hand. He was too stunned by the sights to register a strange woman was holding his hand. They reached the bar.

"Do they have wine?" Ahka asked nervously.

"Wine? Seriously Amarrian?" she asked with a strange expression. The barman approached and she shouted something to him that Ahka couldn't hear over the music. He nodded and walked away. Ahka leaned back against the bar and looked in wonderment. How could the Gallente have accomplished so much and yet were free to behave like this. He watched in fascination at two people dancing, occasionally slowing to kiss before separating again to continue moving to the strange music. There was no separation between the bodies. People were grinding together in strange dances that would have got them arrested on his planet.

"Here!"

Ahka looked down at the drink held out in front of him. It wasn't wine. It was green. He gently took hold of the glass looking at it suspiciously.

"What is.... this?" he asked.

"It's a Gallente Prime Sunrise! Come on Amarrian, try some of our culture. You'll probably never get another chance!"

She indicated over to a sofa against one of the walls and he followed sipping the drink. It was surprisingly pleasant.

"So don't you have bars on Amarr ships?" she asked as they sat.

"Not like THIS!" Ahka exclaimed. "We have bars but not this level of... sin!" he said searching for the right word.

"Yeah this one is pretty different. Its a good ship to serve on. So do you have a girl waiting for you back home? Some homely Amarrian?"

"I am to be married." he replied uncomfortable about talking about his private life.

"Nice. What's she like?" the Gallente woman wouldn't shut up.

"I hear she is very beautiful and devout." he said with a smile.

"What? Wait a sec! You're to be married and you've never met her?" she replied in shock.

"Yes. Our mothers agreed on the union. It is common on our planet."

The Gallente woman shook her head.

"That is so weird. What happens if your not compatible?"

"Our faith will help us!"

"What if she's bad in bed?"

"What if I am?"

"Wait... you've never....."

"Can we talk about something else." Ahka said blushing.

"One more question and I'll change the subject. I promise."

Ahka eyed her suspiciously.

"You've at least kissed a girl before?"

Ahka blushed and looked down at his drink.

"Wow. That's one strange planet you come from Amarrian! Proper old school!"

Ahka downed his drink.

"Why don't you get us more drinks?" he suggested "And think about a new line of questioning?"

The woman laughed, picked up the empty glasses and headed to the bar.

He sat back on the sofa and looked onto the dance floor. He noted a few other races there. There were a couple of Caldari and two Matari! Ahka tensed. Of course he'd seen Matari before but they'd always been slaves. Either hooked on Vitoc or wearing glave collars to control them. These two were free. He tried to tell himself to relax. Two free Matari on his old ship would have been dangerous but these weren't escaped slaves. They had no cause to harm him. Of did they? He was about to make for the exit when his companion returned with the drinks. These were red.

"What's that?" he asked.

"It's a Matari Rust Bucket! I told you I'm on a mission to force you to experience new things. Next cocktail will be Caldari so drink up! We've got a lot of work to do Amarrian!"

Ahka sipped the new drink keeping one eye on the two Matari on the dance floor.

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

I saw a post on the Eve Online Players group Facebook page. Someone was moaning that their support ticket had not been answered in 13 days. OK nothing newsworthy there. Until he said later in the replies what it was for.

Basically he'd petitioned that he'd come back after a few years away (four apparently) and all of his stuffz (tm) was in null sec and he wanted CCP to move it for him!

At first I laughed. Then I thought of the Permaband track HTFU. Then I thought about it more.

Whilst the natural Eve reaction is to say "tough", don't we also need more players in game? What if this guy gets his petition rejected and then just unsubs again. The natural reaction for Eve players will be again something like "If that makes him unsub then we didn't want him in game anyway." However we need players, 10 hard-core Eve players in five years just won't cut it!

So here is the question. How lenient should the GMs be with regard to things like this? Someone who has been away from the game for years, his stuffz has been sat deep in null in a station that may have changed hands a dozen times during his break. He's tried to sell it but no one is buying. What are the options?

Help HimWhilst not really explainable in the mechanics of the "sci fi simulator" the GMs could move his stuffz over to high-sec and let him continue where he left off. You can Roleplay InterBus or someone did it but its still space-magic. However he might continuing playing for years.

**** Him

This is what most people would expect the petition to say. We'll not exactly that. Eve Online is a game of choices and consequences. He left all his stuff deep in null when he unsubbed. However he might not fancy restarting from scratch and just unsub and leave again. An opportunity missed?

I don't know myself. At first I was "Ha! No way you'll get that!". However now I'm of the opinion that there could be merit in special cases like this for GMs to make a special exception (ie been away four years).

Monday, February 1, 2016

We all like important internet spaceships right? The more spaceships the better right? Or are we getting too many to be easily to remember them all. A Mastodon on scan? That the hell is that and what does it do? Oh! Never mind!

Are we getting too many ships. Is it too complicated to remember them all and what their traits are? Do FC's these days need an encyclopedic knowledge of ship types unless they want their fleet to DIAF. With more and more ships being released each year will we ever reach "too many" or do you think there can never be too many important internet spaceship types?

Banter on!

So are we ever going to get into a position where we have too many spaceships? Probably not in my humble opinion. Things are certainly going to get more difficult as the ship pool grows but Eve Online players have shown to be particularly good at adapting to changes.

You need to ask what is needed to be known of a ship? For me there are a few questions.

Is it generally point-blank, scram-kite or full-kite fit usually?Is it tanky or DPS usually?Has it any special traits/abilities?

For example I'll take a Dramiel in a 10mn Thrasher however I'll run from a Daredevil. Simply because the Daredevil and its enhanced web will counter my only defense - speed. However a Dramiel usually will get blapped by me as its own traits will not help it. Daredevil is similar to a Succubus. The 200% AB bonus means it'll be able to get under my guns if the pilot is good and my web won't be enough to slow them down.

Of course you cannot predict every fit. You either make the assumption and then die when they are fit the opposite to what you are expecting or quickly look on a killboard if you have time to try and guess who it might be.

In fleet situations it gets a bit easier as individual traits matter less. The issue here is force multiplier ships. We got four of those in the last major update.

"What have they got?"

"Well FC... they have a shed-load of Falcons and Rooks, a metric-shit-ton of Guardians and a wing of Command Destroyers to zoom in and send our own logi on a trip all over the grid!""Right, then we'll go the other way then!"

For me the growing ship pool isn't a massive problem. More often than not I'm solo and pick my fights. I'll scan for plex or if I see someone warp to a plex to draw them there. I'll show info on the D-Scan results if its one of those rare ships I cannot remember it's traits. If I've seen my opponent already I'll look him up on zKill and see how he usually fits that type of ship. If I've not seen him but there are only a few in local I'll look everyone up on zKill to try and guess who it is. A lot of people fly only a handful of ships and many times you can get a reasonably accurate picture of who is flying what.

One idea to get around right clicking would be to add the class of ship to the D-Scan. So as well as "type" you would also get "class". So Command Destroyer, Combat Recon, Assault Frigate would show up next to the name of the ship making ID a bit more easy?

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